Improvement in potato-planter, cultivator, and digger



istat 'atrti l meegaan NM MM CHA RLES J. C. PETERSEN, OF PGRTCHEST ER, NE W ,YORIQ i LettersPdtent No. 86,442, dated Feb/mary 2, 1869.

To all whom 'it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES J. C. lnrnnsnzv, of Portchester, in the county of Westchester, and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Potato-Planters, Cultivators, and Diggers; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, which will enable others skilled in the art to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, in which- Figure l, Sheet I, represents a vertical longitudinal section of my improvedpotatddigger, the plane of sec?V tion being indicated` by the line :1: x, fig. 4. and the visionary direction by the arrow 1, lig. 4.

Figure 2, Sheet I, is a vertical longitudinal section of my improved potato-planter, the plane of section being lindicated by the line 2: as, iig. 4, and the vision` ary direction by the arrow 2, fig. 4.

Figure 3, Sheet I, is a detail horizontal section, taken on the plane of the line y y, iig. 2.

Figure 4, Sheet II, is a front elevation of my iinproved potato-cultivator.

Figure 5,-Sheet II, is a detail vertical section, taken on the plane of the line z z, tig .4.

Figure G, Sheet II, is a detail longitudin taken on the Yplane of the line x z', iig.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts.

This invention relates to a new agricultural imple ment, which can be used for planting, cultivating, and digging potatoes. The wholeapparatus is so conal section,

'structed that it can be readily converted from a planter into 'a cultivator or digger, and vice corsa.

The invention consists in such a constructionof the various parts constituting the machine, that the various functions will be performed by simple and strong apparatus.

A, in the drawing, represents the frame of 'my improved machine.

This frame is made of cast-iron or other sui'tab'le material, and is composed of side Aplates or bars a. b, of a front cross-bar, c, and of suitable other cross-bars or plates, of which one, d, in rear, supports the driver-s seat, B, and the vibrating grate or sieve, C.

D is a horizontal tube, having its bd'ariugs in the side bars a, b of the frame A.

E is the cylindrical rear axle. The same is litt-ed through the tube D,and has its bearings in the same.

The main wheels, F and Gr, are respectively mounted on the 'ends of the axle.

The front wheels, H H, are hung on an axle, I, which is, by means of a king-holt, c, pivoted to au L-shaped plate, f, the upright arm of said plate heilig, by means of a horizontal pin, g, pivoted to the front bar, c, ofthe frame A. The front truck is thus perfectly flexible, it being able to swing horizontally around the kingbolt, and vertically around the pin g.

From the tube D project upward two o'r more arms,

'h h, which, at their upper ends, form bearings for a horizontal shaft, J. One of the arms is extended upward, to form a lever or handle, t', by means of which the tube can be turned, said lever having a springprojection, j, that fits into one of a series of notches, provided for that purpose, in the side board a, of the frame A, so that, by means of this spring-projection, or its equivalent, thetube and its appendages can be locked in any desired position.

The shaft J fits through a slot in the side plate a, and has a toothed wheel, L, on its outer end, which meshes into a toothed wheel, l, formed on the wheel F.

Lis a metal or other frame, consisting of two uprights, m m, which are, at their upper ends, hung on the shaft J, while their lower ends are connected by means of a semi-cylindrical plate, n, that projects forward, as shown.

In the frame L are the bearings for an upright shaft, M, which has a bevel-wheel, o, on its upper end, the same meshing into the teeth of a bevel wheel, p, on the shaft J.

Thus, as the wheel F revolves, when the machine is moved over the ground, the shaftJ will also be turned, and, with the same, the shaft M.

By means of the lever t, the arms hican be swung forward or backward, to raise or lower the frame L, or to bring them into a more or less inclined position.

The lower part of the frame L should, by means of a flexible or jointed bar or chain, r, be connected with the front axle I, as shown in figs. 1 and 2.

N is a screw. mounted on the lower end of the shaft M.

When the" apparatus is to be used as a potato-dig ger, a semi-cylindrical plate, o, is secured, by means of bolts or otherwise, to the4 rear of the semi-cylindrical part n of the frame L, so as to form a complete cylinder, 'n C), in which the screw N Works,as shown in fig. l.

A shovel, I', is formed on or attached to the plate 0, and projects forward fronrthe same, and side cutters s sare arranged on each side of the shovel, as in fi l.

gWhen the frame Lis lowered, so as to bring the shovel into the ground, and as the machine is drawn forward, the potatoes, as wellas the earth around them, will be taken up by the shovel, and will, by the screw N, be taken from the shovel.

The screw N deposits its load in a continuous supply upon the vibrating sieve or grate C, which is directly in rear of the shell O.

The shovel can, by means of the lever i, be adjusted up and down, so as to take up potatoes at any desired depth.

Q Q are a series of bent plates, with corrugated sharpened lower edges. The plates'are attached to the front ofthe cylinder u O, so that their corrugated edges project below the edge of the plate In, as shown in iigs. 1 and 4.

The plates Q are up-and-down adjustable, either by being slotted or otherwise.

The object of the plates Q, is to cut the vines at a certain desired height above the ground, to prevent their entering the machine.

The sieve or grate C is a frame, having a perforated bottom, and is suspended by a pin, t, from the rear part of the frame A.

The front end of the sieve is suspended, by means of rods u u, from a T- shaped bar, R, which is, with its two opposite ends, pivoted to the sides of the frame A, while its projecting arm is pivoted to a perforated rod,

e, resting on the tube D.

By its connection with the post v, the height ofthe front end ofthe sieve can be regulated.

arm. projecties from .the sides af the sieve, is hung a wheel, w, which does', with its edge, come in contact with the face of the wheel G, or IP, the said face being toothed or roughened, as shown in iig. 2.

S is an elbow-crank, hung to the axle E, and iitting, with the upper arm, against the plate b (or a) of the frame A. so that it can be clamped thereto by means of a set-screw, or be otherwise fastened.

` To the lower arr'n ofthe crank S is pvoted a rod, x, which fits through a lug, y, projecting from the rear part of the sieve C, a spiral spring, z, being itted around the rod x, between the lug y and a shoulder on the rod.

By the action of the spring, the wheel w is always held against the wheel G, and if the sieve should be moved to oneside by a projection on the wheel G, it will at once be thrown back by the spring. In this manner the sieve is oscillated around its pivot t.

By means of a nut, y, on the rod x, the power of the spring z can be regulated.

To the rear end of the sieve O is secured a trough or semi-cylindrical vessel, T, which is at its ends pivoted to arms projecting from the sieve. The potatoes from the oscillating sieve fall into this vessel T.

To one end ofthe vessel T is secured the lowerend ofa rod, a', which rod is, with its upper end, fitted through the end of a lever, b', as shown, in iig. 2. The

opposite end of the lever b' is pivoted to the side of the frame A.

The lever is supported by the cam-shaped hub c of one of the wheelsll` G, or by some cam-shaped projection of the axle E, a friction-roller, d', being pivoted to the lever, and resting on the cam c. As the cam c revolves, it causes the lever b to be oscillated, and by the same motion the rod a is alternately raised and lowered; thereby the vesselT is also oscillated.

In this manner the contents of the vessel T are discharged once during every revolution of the drivingwheels F G, but one depression being for that purpose formed on the cam c.

The potato-digger has now been fully described. It

' will be se'en that the potatoes are dug` by means ofthe shovel P, the depth of which in the ground is regulated by means of the lever t.

From the shovel P, the potatoes and the earth are transferred, by means'of the screws N, to the vibrating sieve 0, upon which the earth is separated from the potatoes.

From the sieve the potatoes fall into the vessel T, andare from the same .discharged at regular intervals, so that they can be easily formed in heaps. and

picked up.v

When the apparatus is to be used as a potato-planter, the rear half cylinder 0, with its shovel-attachment I?,

.as well as the screw N, will be removed.

Instead of the semi-cylinder O, a tube, U, provided with projecting plates e e', is screwed Orptherwise fastened to the rear-of the semi-cylindrical part n of the frame L, in the manner shown in iigs.2 and 6, and so that the tube U is directly in rear of the shaft M.

A hopper, V, is attached to the frame A in front of the shaft M, and above the semi-cylinder n.

The hopper has an aperture, close above its bottom, in its inclined rear wall, said aperture being closed by a cylindrical bloclr,W, mounted on the shaft M.

The block W .has a lhole or' seed-receptacle, g,which, as the block revolves, is illed with seed from the hopper. `By the further revolution, the block carries this seed away from the hopper, and discharges it into the tube, the upper part of which is enlarged, for the purpose of more securely receivingthe seed, as in fig. 2.

Through the tube U the seed is dropped to the gronnd,.into a furrow formed by the plow f and is then Covered by@ overerLX, arwngedlnrear of VYthe lated by setting the part i', or both parts, by meansof a set-screw, j.

The ends of the opening inthe shell 'i' should not come in contact with the part h', to allow adjustment.

Two spaces or seed-receptacles are thus formed, of which one may be closed by meansof a plate, k', attached to either part.

Instead of' having one seed-opening, the block W may be differently constructed, so as to have two or more.

The coverer X is a plate, with laps or projecting plates l at the ends. It is pivoted in front to the lower part of the tube, while in rear it is suspended from the upper part of the tube U by means of a bar, m', which is adjustable as to length. The coverer is thus yielding and adj nstable.

For a cultivator, the tube U is taken-olf, as well as the' hopper, and, instead of the tube, two plows, Y Y, are secure he two projecting flanges of the semicylinder n, either' byrneans of bolts, as n fig. 5, or otherwise, their mould-boards being on the inside, as in iig. 4, so that they both throw the ground yto the middle, thereby forming a hill between them.

The depth of the cultivators, as well as that of the plow f', is regulated by means of the lever i, in the manner described for the potato-digger.

The .cultivator, when arranged as described, can be used for potatoes, as well as for corn, rice, and other plants.

The shape of the plowshares Y does not form part of this invention.

Having thus described my invention,

I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent- 1. The combination of the screen N with the digging-shovel and vibrating sieve, substantially as described, for the purpose specified.

2. The npand-down adjustablev plates Q, arranged above the 'slovel of a potato-digger, substantially as herein shown and described, for the purpose of cutting the vines, as specified.

3. The L-shaped plate j, introduced between the front axle and the frame A, substantially as described, for producing a jointed front truck, the said plate being, by means of a vertical and horizontal pin, respectively pivoted to the axle and frame, as spccied.

4. The frame L, for supporting the planting, digging, or cultivating-implements, when it is suspended from a rotating shaft, J which has its bearings in arms, projecting from a tube, I), that is litted around the axle E of the driving-wheels, asspecilicd.

5. The combination of shovel ]screw N, vibrating sieve C, and oscillating scoop T, with each other, substantially in the manner described, for the purpose of l producing a potato-'digger and separator, as set forth. 6. The vibrating sieve G,When suspended froni and oscillating on a pin, t, in combination With the rods u, bar R, and support V, and with the lever S, rod x, spring y, and roller w, all made and operating substantially as herein shown and described.

7. The oscillatingr scoop T, arranged in rear of the sieve C, and connected, by means of a rod, a', with the oscillating lever b', which is operated by means of a rotating cam, c', substantially as herein shown and described. OHAS. J. C. PETERSEN. Witnesses:

A. V. BRrEsEN, ALEX. F. ROBERTS. 

